But she's my favourite character
by Darke Eco Freak
Summary: Halloween, the spookiest day of the year, unless you live in Gotham because then it's just another day. Not for one boy though, no, for Jason Todd, Halloween is one of the few days he can be a kid, trick or treat, have fun, dress as his favourite character, even bond with Alfred in the way only the Batfamily can.


**DEF: Not my fault, entirely at least. ****Based on a tumblr post explaining Jason Todd being five feet as Robin and me expressing my confusion over it, i thought it was talking about me for a second (i'm five feet, named Robin). And user grizlatron said that they could only picture Jason dressing as me, a random nerd, for halloween as I'd be a character from a book for him. **

**His costume is what it is because I recently bought jeans and had to alter them and I'm wearing the Jason's top right now, the second I also own. I wear glasses and am nearly always wearing a watch. I made up the Wwfyt series off the top of my head but you're not allowed to steal it. It be mine.**

_Daniel: Sup, so yeah, when she's not piecing together DIMI, she's still in the Halloween vibe with this little gem. Note that DEF has never been trick or treating. We don't have that in Trinidad so yeah, if anything's wrong here that's why. Also, no ownership of the characters. Except Robin Daniel, Chris Davids, Sasha and Natasha.  
_

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"Come on Al! We're gonna miss all the good stuff!" he whined, pushing the red frames back up his nose for the fifth time that minute. Yeah they'd looked awesome when he'd finally finished his costume but he had no idea they'd be so frustrating to actually wear! Still, there had to be a trade off somewhere and he should have known that the jeans wouldn't cut it. Finding the right style had been had enough but finding the right size had been impossible, now he actually knew what Robin felt like having to alter all her jeans because she was too short for them.

"You do realise that I am an old man Master Todd and thus not as physically fit as yourself," his chaperone for the night answered, probably checking that _all_ the windows were locked before he emerged into the hallway. Jason scrunched up his nose and pouted but it probably didn't look very cool with the glasses falling off his face again.

"You know that's not true Al, you do more stuff than most people I know," he argued, pushing the things back up and holding out his hand for the trick or treat bag, it was the only thing he wasn't able to make, well that and the watch and the frames but everything else was Jason Todd original. The only reason all of it wasn't was because he couldn't embroider to save his life although he had tried, really he did but he just ended up with sore fingers and impossibly tangled thread. He'd given it to Alfred, gotten the picture off the internet, drew it on the cloth and let Alfred handle the rest, and it looked awesome.

"Thanks Al, it looks great," he said, holding it up to the light and so he could fully appreciate the colours and shapes, just like in the book. The glasses frame had been ordered online weeks ago, ever since he got it into his head that he wanted to be Robin Daniel for Halloween and Bruce had locked it away until yesterday to make sure he didn't break em. The watch had been special made because Bruce had way too much money and wanted at least one thing that looked expensive on him.

"Thank you Jason, I try," the old man sighed, patting him on the head while Bruce finally came out of the cave looking grumpy, nothing new there, and put out.

"You two should be back by ten for the latest. No parties, not even the ones Dick insists are safe, and please don't eat all the candy one time. The dentists are already going to make a mint, don't need the pharmacies going out of business because hyper kids are giving their parents headaches," the man ticked off. Somehow the guy managed to pull off sounding as serious as a heart attack while smiling from ear to ear, at both him and Alfred.

"You have my word Master Bruce, although I'm not sure to what measures Richard might go to have us attend the costume party this year."

He frowned slightly, he'd been hearing lots about it, the costume party, but whenever he asked Bruce, he just smirked, and whenever he asked Alfred, the old man would find something more important to do. Of course, he'd asked Babs but she never answered and Dick just got this look on his face, like he'd swallowed a lemon or smelled something really bad.

"I keep telling him to just make something and go, can't look that surreally good. Look at Jason, he made his entire costume and it looks fantastic, the only problem would be that he's a twelve year old white boy instead of a seventeen year old Indian girl but other than that he's spot on." Grinning broadly, he pushed at his frames again, yeah, so what if he wanted to be Robin Daniel? Nobody ever said he had to be the same race, age, heck even the same gender, she was a cool character, besides, if he running around as the Boy Wonder most nights then he could be a chick for one. He let them talk for another five minutes before deciding that yes, he'd like to actually leave the house and enjoy Halloween for once.

"Alright guys, it's already half seven! We should've been gone by six! Thanks for coming to see us off Bruce, you can go back to the cave and brood, Al we need to go now!" he cried, grabbing hold of Al's black sleeve and tugging. He didn't look back until they were at the bottom of the drive and he didn't listen to Al and let up until they were actually at the first house, the Millers or something.

The whole neighbourhood looked amazing, candles lighting from most windows, jack-o-lanterns along the sidewalk, some people had automated scarecrows that screeched and cackled when people passed too close, there was even one house with a lit up t-rex. Maybe there was something to living in one of the richest neighbourhoods in the state, the neighbours really knew how to show off, each one trying to outdo the other and making it enjoyable for everyone else. Though he though Wayne Manor looked the best, they didn't need anything but the candles he and Dick had put up in the leafless trees, it had the whole gothic vibe going for it.

There were two girls at the first house when he got to the porch steps, the twins from down the street. They were dressed up as those singing things from Japan, vocaloid maybe, the one with green hair and red hair. He would have expected their dad to buy the entire thing for them but he could tell that at least part was handmade.

"Happy Halloween!" he greeted, grinning when they turned as one, twins were cool although it'd probably be a little weird having someone that looked exactly like you but wasn't you.

"Hi Jason, your costume looks nice," the one with red hair complimented, smiling shyly before giggling behind her hand.

"Yours are great too, how long have you been out here?" he asked, pushing the door bell which let out a terrified scream, and stepping back with them.

"Not too long, lots of people started around seven but the good stuff usually comes out about now," the green haired one answered, smiling brightly at the woman that opened the door. She was really pretty, blonde hair that he was pretty sure was fake, either a wig or a dye job and wore a cape although the rest of her clothes were pretty normal.

"Trick or Treat!" They chorused, all holding out their bags and beaming up at her.

"My, my, don't you all look wonderful. Jason, Sasha, Natasha," she called off in order, dropping deliciously sweet milk chocolates into their bags, Bruce better stock up on the Alieve cause he was planning on sharing his stash with Dick tomorrow.

"Thank you Mrs. Miller," he answered just a beat faster than the twins, yeah he'd known their names but how could you expect him to know which was which? They all waved once before running back to where Alfred was waiting with the twins' older brother who was probably going for a pink prince, weird but he'd seen worse, like the guy wearing the tux and calling it Sebastian Michaelis.

"Hey Al, okay if we hit up the neighbourhood with Natasha and Sasha?" he asked because clearly they were gonna stay together. If the girls had a problem with him, they would've just ignored him when he came up just now, he knew how people worked, they would never say out right that they didn't like you unless they were bigger than you. And no that wasn't something he'd read in 'Wwfyt' just something he'd picked up and the book had confirmed.

"Of course, strength in numbers and all that, I was just telling Brandon here that he could leave if he wanted. I'm more than capable of watching you three and we're not going to leave the neighbourhood," he explained, eyes narrowing slightly as though he expected the wheedling and whining to come soon. He was obviously expected the Dick approach, seriously though, why would he want to go anywhere else tonight? He had all the rest of the time to hang around all the shady parts of the city, tonight he wanted to get expensive candy and throw up about half of it before he got home.

"Thank you so much Mr. Alfred, dad said we could be home whenever so don't even bother about time. Sash, Tash, be good for Mr. Alfred and don't tell mom that I left so early, kay?" Brandon requested, pulling out his phone and rapid fire texting.

"We won't Bubba, have fun with Marshal, tell Fee we said hi!" they both called as their brother turned a shade of pink that nearly matched his bright pink hair to a t. He waved once more before breaking into a brisk jog, they stared after him until he rounded the corner, cape and all fluttering in the wind.

"Well, the show goes on. Who do you think we should hit next?" he asked, letting them take lead, they'd lived here all their lives, he'd been here for barely a year. They ended up on the far side of the road, closer to town, where there were a few more people that didn't live in the neighbourhood, a lot more kids to talk with at least. They ended up as a group of five, picking up another girl dressed as the male lead of the second book in the 'Wwfyt' trilogy, and a boy a little older than them as Hiccup from that dragon show.

"So for nearly the entire book the main character wears this?" Sash asked, casting a sceptical glance at the frump grey pyjama top. He pushed at the frames again and straightened out the top, making sure the words were visible to everyone passing 'I want your 3 (a glittery red heart thank you very much) tonight', it was kinda part of the title.

"Practically, yeah. She just got up and ran, didn't really think anything through, that took guts if you ask me," he shrugged and looked down at his bag of cavity inducing deliciousness, he could already feel a tooth ache coming on. Glancing at his watch, he was shocked by exactly how late it was, well relatively, nearly nine o'clock, time for trick or treating to finish and the Halloween parties to start, just enough time to hit another house though.

"Wow, what's the name of that book again?" Tash asked, pulling out her phone to save the name, he grinned for what felt like the millionth time that night. He couldn't remember smiling and laughing this much ever, not even as Robin; Boy Wonder, Halloween had turned out to be a huge success.

"Who's waiting for you tonight? Second's 'Who waited for you yesterday?' The third's set for next month 'Who're you waiting for tomorrow?" he rattled off, he couldn't wait for the last instalment, he'd preordered it and everything.

"And Chris Davids is the main of the second book," Alyssa chipped in, nodding at her own top 'I 3 (this heart done in red rhinestones) Me'.

"One more house and we'll call it a night yes?" Alfred suggested because somewhere along the way he'd become the designated nanny, Alyssa's sister running off to a part and Caleb's brother being so grateful to have him off his hands. They all lived in the same neighbourhood though so it really wasn't anything to have the extras, it had made everything that much more fun anyway.

"Yeah, I can't wait to get home and sort through my candy while watching the Saw marathon," Alyssa agreed while the rest made noises of acceptance. He left them behind to scout ahead a bit, they'd hit all the good places on the way down but there had to be one place that was still ripe for the picking.

"Hey, you, the nerd in the glasses." He looked up just in time to avoid getting hit with a crushed can of soda. Immediately on the offence, he dropped into a fighting stance, just like he did when he was up against the Riddler or Joker or just any random thug.

"Give us all your candy and maybe we'll let go without getting beat, sound good?"

He wanted so bad to bash the boy's head in but he actually knew who that was, the son of one of the Wayne stake holders. It wasn't that the guy could cause trouble for Bruce, no way, no how, but it would look bad if he broke both the kid's arms and sent him home crying to mommy. But he wasn't going to let him off the hook, how dare he call Robin Daniel a nerd as though it was a bad thing! She might be a bookworm with a serious internet addiction but that didn't mean there was anything wrong with that, so what if she was a nerd, she was still an amazing character.

"Didn't you hear me? Drop the bag and go."

Summoning every ounce of control, especially when the boy got up in his face, his friends snickering in the background, he stood his ground and didn't spit in the idiot's face. He really did have an iron will, not even sweeping the idiot's feet out from under him when one of the lackeys pushed him down, the red frames went flying and he knew there was a rip over one of his knees. Head whipping up, he gave his best impression of the Batglare that he could, hoping that it was even a fraction as terrifying as the actual thing.

"Oh my-I am so sorry, please don't-let's get out of here!"

He stared in open shock when the boys turned tail and ran, just like those robbers that he and Bruce caught last week trying to mug a guy, just one look at Bats and they were heading for the hills.

"Are you alright Master Todd?" Alfred asked, helping him to his feet and brushing him off, tsking at the state of his clothes, his pants had a bad rip over the left knee and there was dirt on his custom made bag but nothing had spilled so there was that.

"Fine, Bruce'll never believe it," he snickered, dusting off his knees and ignoring the slight sting of the gnashed knee, he'd had worse lots of times before, nothing a little Neosporin wouldn't fix.

"Indeed, that was Eli Parsons, I'm sure Master Bruce will have some choice words to share with his father. Now children, I think it high time that we all head home." And just like that, Alfred had them all rounded up like lost little sheep and he was their shepherd. By the time they'd dropped everyone off, making sure they actually went inside, it was half nine and he was surprisingly tired, weird seeing as he was usually up til the asscrack of dawn but whatever.

"NIGHT BRUCE!" he yelled knowing his voice would echo all the way down to the cave, or Bruce would see it on one of the cameras. The candy was safely in the fridge, his knee was fine, most definitely not the worst thing that had ever happened, and his costume was in the wash, all in all it had been a great night. Oh! And he'd managed to pull off a Batglare! He couldn't wait to rub it in Dick's smug face, that was probably cooler than any party he'd gone to.

* * *

"Hey Al, I ever tell you how 'Oh my Jesus!' scary you can be sometimes? Cause if not, then I'm telling you now, you are," the younger of the brunets commented idly, rolling a wrapped jaw stopper between his fingers.

"Quite, the boy was clearly being a bully and Jason is too well behaved to fight back. He was most likely thinking of what you would say, Bruce," the old butler explained nodding at the man with his back to the both of them. Normally, the large screens would be running footage from all across the city, monitoring stores and neighbourhoods and the like, making sure that the people of Gotham were safe for another night to come.

However, tonight was different. Each screen had a breakdown of night frames per screen, each one holding a frozen bit of footage from the night spent out with the children. Jason laughing with Alyssa, the lovely twin girls from down the street giving an impromptu performance, Caleb and Jason trading candy, all five frozen in the act of running from one house to the next. It warmed his heart to see the young boy so happy, he was so unlike Dick, so very different, his background so much darker, that it was a right joy to see anything akin to a smile on the boy's face and tonight had been riddled with laughter, spectacular.

"You know, he thinks that he pulled off the glare," Dick remarked, leaning against the chair in a way that always managed to irritate his adoptive guardian yet the man had yet to say anything against it.

"Let the boy have his fun, at least he had more than you Mr. Third-In-The-Nightwing-look-a-like-competition," he replied smugly, gathering the tray and cups before retreating back up the stairs. Smiling quietly to himself because while five of the six screens held various scenes from a Halloween spent trick or treating, one screen was devoted entirely to a single moment.

Jason on his knees, head snapped back at the boys that had pushed him down. The red frames that he'd had trouble with all night missing as he tried his best to glare at the children although the worst he managed was a rather adorable pout. His cheeks were still too chubby yet, chin too round, his eyes not quite the right shape though the emotion and passion in them was more than enough. However, the boys faces were still contorted into masks of abject horror, staring not quite at the boy on the ground but rather just beyond him to the figure standing just a ways back.

While he might not have actually gone as anything, really what was the point, he had still taken something along, something easily concealed by his coat. He had to admit, he did cut a rather imposing figure in his monochromatic uniform with the birch switch in his hands, the wicked rod held firmly between both hands. Anyone could tell he intended to use it, and he had at the time, just who in the name of all that was just did those boys think they were?

Did they have any idea who they were bullying? Did they know the lengths to which that child went to prevent things such as that happening to other children, other people, adults, to have to go through that himself? Disgusting. Completely and utterly so.

No one would ever touch his boys, ever.

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**DEF: This actually came out rather well for me doing it up at two in the morning. Yes, very well. My first actually happy, no angst whatsoever one shot, go me! Thanks, of course, go towards Grizlatron without whom, this story would not exist.  
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_Daniel: Well, we hoped you liked it. Anyone expecting DIMI, uh, well they're eight different dances, we've completed one and a half. School got in the way. Hopefully another four will be down by April when she has time.  
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